Faculty Colloquium

This year the BSS Faculty Colloquium Series congratulates Dr. Ryan Patten, Department of Political Science, for being selected as this year's honored scholar and keynote speaker.

The colloquium was held in the BMU Ballroom on Tuesday November 18 from 5:30 - 7:30 pm.

Dr. Patten's scholarship focuses both nationally and locally in many areas of criminal justice, but typically with a policy focus. Dr. Patten's co-authored book: Hunting for "Dirtbags": Why Cops Over-Police the Poor and Racial Minorities, with Dr. Lori Beth Way specifically addresses why law enforcement over-police the poor and racial minorities. Based on his book, Dr. Patten's keynote speech will address topics including, race, ethnicity, social class, culture, law, perceptions, and policy.

Current events across the country provide a background for Dr. Patten to make comparisons between his book and contemporary topics. Recall the woman in southern California that was videotaped being assaulted by the California Highway Patrol officer, or the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri that polarized the town and led to riots.

Dr. Patten is an active scholar; in addition to his recent book, he published six peer-reviewed journal articles in 2013 and 2014. Dr. Patten has a strong record of active publication in numerous peer-reviewed journals and has given presentations to criminology societies nationally and internationally, most recently in Budapest, Hungary.

The evening began with a faculty poster session running followed by Dr. Patten's keynote address and a question/answer. His talk is entitled Hunting for "Dirtbags": Why Cops Over-Police the Poor and Racial Minorities.Dr. Patten will discuss the "Why" of the law enforcement's discretionary time being focused on the poor and minorities.